- By Sahelee Rakshit
- Thu, 17 Oct 2024 10:18 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Bomb Scare For Flights: At least nine more flights received bomb threats on social media on Thursday, continuing the recent wave of such threats. These consist of two Vistara flights, one IndiGo flight, and five Air India flights. This brings the total number of similar instances this week to about thirty.
After receiving a bomb threat, a Vistara flight carrying 147 passengers from Frankfurt, Germany, to Mumbai had to make an emergency landing earlier today.
According to a statement from Vistara, after receiving a security alert, the Frankfurt-Mumbai flight made a safe landing here.
“The Vistara flight UK 028 operating from Frankfurt to Mumbai on October 16, 2024, was subject to a security threat received on social media,” the airline said.
“Five Air India flights received a security threat on social media today. These have been duly reported to the regulatory bodies and all laid down procedures were strictly followed as per guidance of the regulatory bodies. All five flights have made a safe landing. Air India is committed to and accords top priority to the safety and security of its passengers and crew,” NDTV reported citing an Air India official.
Following reports of a bomb threat, Akasa Air aircraft QP1335, carrying 184 people, headed for Bengaluru on Wednesday, declared an emergency and retreated to Delhi. Shortly after, an IndiGo aircraft from Mumbai headed for Delhi had to be rerouted to Ahmedabad for the same reasons.
Meanwhile, a minor was caught for making bomb threats against four aircraft using a fake social media account created in his friend's name to accuse him in the incident. According to reports, the child was apprehended in Chhattisgarh's Rajnandgaon, and authorities are investigating whether there is a bigger plot behind these threats.
According to top Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) officials, there were many rounds of discussions with various parties, including security agencies.
The government also intends to implement tight guidelines to avoid occurrences of false bomb threats against airlines, including placing the culprits on a no-fly list. Under this provision, such a person will be forbidden from traveling with any airline.